Wheel.



PATENTBD APR. 12, 1904.

0. H. BIGALKY.

W EEL- APPLIOATION FILED D30. 4, 1902.

2 BHEETSSHEET 1.

no MODEL.

WITNESSE 5.-

PATENTED APR; 12, 1904.

v mp AL H m B G urmoux'on mm 1130. 4.1902.

2 BHEETSSHBET 2.

I0 IODBL.

IIIIIIII/IIIIIIIlIIllI/IIIIIIIIIIIIlllIlII/IIII m 5 5 m U a W I d1 TTORNE Y Patented April 12, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES H. BICALKY, OF ONEIDA, NEWV YORK.

WHEEL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 756,819, dated April 12, 1904. Application filed December 4, 1902. Serial No. 138,900. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES H. BIoALKY, of Oneida, in the county of Madison, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Wheels, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to improvements in wheels, and is adapted to be used either as a vehicle-wheel or as a pulley.

This wheel is made up almost exclusively of sheet metal; and the object of the various improvements is to assemble the parts in such manner that the wheel will withstand all ordinary strains and still be considerably lighter than other wheels of the same size in which wooden spokes are used.

A more specific object is to insert the spokes in a suitable annular recess in the hub with their adjacent faces in contact, whereby each forms a key for the other to resist inward radial strains, thus relieving the hub from such strain and permitting the use of lighter material.

A further object is to provide the hub with opposite clamping-disks, which cooperate with tapering walls on the inner ends of the spokes to draw the spokes inwardly as the disks are drawn axially toward each other.

Further objects will appear in the subsequent description.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is an end elevation'of a portion of a wheel embodying the features of my invention, portions of the hub being broken away and one of the spokes being shown partly in section. Figs. 2 and 3 are sectional views taken, respectively. on lines 2 2 and 8 3, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of one of the detached spokes. Figs. 5 and 6 are opposite end views of the spokes seen in Fig. 1, a portion of Fig. 6 being shown in section.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

In order to clearly demonstrate the practicability of my invention, I have shown a vehicle-wheel consisting of a hub 1, a rim 2, spokes 3, uniting the hub and rim, and a tire a, encircling the rim, the hub being shown as mounted upon a suitable axle 5. The hub 1 includes a cylindrical sheet-metal sleeve 6 and oppositely-arranged hub-sections 7 and 8, which are also formed of sheet metal and encircle the opposite ends of the sleeve 6, between annular shoulders 9 and 10, for holding the hub-sections from endwise movement. Secured tightly within the opposite ends of the sleeve 6 are cup-bearings 11, which are also formed of sheet metal and are held from endwise movement toward each other by an inner sleeve 12, fitting closely within the sleeve 6 and having its opposite ends abutting against the adjacent end faces of the cups 11. These cups cooperate with suitable cones 13 upon the axle 5 to receive ball-bearings 14, one of the cones, as the one at the outer end of the axle, being adjustable in the usual manner and is held in its adjusted position by a lock-nut 15. The shoulder 9 is tightly fitted upon the inner end of the sleeve 6 and forms practically a part of said sleeve, while the outer shoulder 10 is threaded internally and engages with a threaded outer end of the sleeve, being therefore adjustable axially of the sleeve and together with shoulder 9 operates to clamp the hub-sections 7 and 8 firmlyagainst the spokes in a manner heretofore described. This shoulder 10 is preferably angular in outline to receive a suitable Wrench and is preferably secured to a cap 16, which closes the outer end of the sleeve and conceals the outer end of the axle, thereby forming a substantially dust-proof casing for the bearings.

In order to further protect the bearings from the entrance of the dust, I provide the axle with an annular shoulder 17, between.

which and the shoulder 9 is interposed a felt washer 18 for the purpose of excluding the dust from the inner hearing.

The hub-sections 7 and 8 preferably consist of cup-shaped. shells arranged concentrically with thesleeve 6, with their convex ends extending in opposite directions from their adjacent ends, said adjacent ends being separated from each other for forming an an nular recess to receive the inner ends of the spokes. These adjacent ends are formed with flaring portions 19 and substantially flat annular flanges 20, the peripheral edges of which are turned over outwardly for forming marginal beads 21, which serve to stiffen the hub-sections and gives a more pleasing appearance to the hub when the parts are as- 5 sembled.

The spokes 3 vpreferably consist of sheetmetal tubes, having their inner ends inserted into the annular recess of the hub and. tapered circumferentially, said tapering ends being arranged edge to edge in contact, so that their meeting edges are disposed in substantially radial lines, and the inner end of each spoke forms a key wedging in between the adjacent spokes to resist radial inward strain, the effect being that the spokes form practically a continuous hub independent of the shells 7 and 8 and sleeve 12 and receive themajor part of the strain which may be applied to the rim. In the formation of these spokes they are first made in taperingtubular formthat is, tapering from their inner ends toward their outer endsafter which their inner ends are compressed to the desired angle to entirely fill the annular recesses without engaging the periphery of the sleeve 6. By thus compressing the inner ends of the spokes circumferentially their lateral sides are forced outwardly, or rather the inner ends are expanded laterally, and are therefore wider laterally than circumferentially.

The inner flaring ends of the sides of the spokes are engaged by the flaring portions 19 of the sections 7 and 8, and when these sections are drawn together the flaring portions 19 ride upon the flaring side walls 22 of the spokes and operate to draw the spokes inwardly and to thereby wedge them more firmly against each other.

The inner ends of the meeting walls of the spokes are preferably cut slightly longer than the side walls and are then bent inwardly to' ward each other for forming flanges 23,which abut against each other and serve to reinforce and strengthen the inner ends of the spokes against lateral and circumferential compression.

It is evident from the foregoing description that the hub-section 7 abuts against the shoulder 9 and that as the cap 16, with its shoulder 10,

gages the outer end of the hub-section 8, and thereby firmly impinges the spoke between the adjacent faces of said hub-sections; butI preferably provide additional clamping members, as bolts 24:,whieh are passed through suitable 'pertures in the hub-sections and spokes and erve to additionally lock the spokes in operative position, the apertures-in the spokes being slightly elongated to permit the spokes to be drawn inwardly and at the same time prevent shearing strain upon the bolts. The outer ends of these tubular spokes are reduced in diameter and are preferably elongated laterally for the purpose of forming as broad a lateral bearing upon the rim as possible to reis screwed inwardly upon the sleeve 6 it en-.

sist torsional and lateral strains upon the rim, and I provide these outer reduced ends with annular beads 25,which abut against the inner face of the rim, the outer ends of said spokes being extended beyond these beads and passed through apertures 26 inthe rim, after which the extreme outer ends of the spokes are expanded for forming annular flanges 27,whi'ch-- engage the inner face of the rim and firmly lock the spokes and rim together.

The rim 2 may be of any desired form, and I have shown it as adapted to receive the tire I, being provided with a curved seat 28 and with a central inward depression for forming a recess 29, which receives the outer ends of the spokes and prevents contact of the tire with said outer ends.

The cups l1,which form the inner and outer bearings for the balls 14:, are also preferably formed of sheet-metal strips having their intermediate portions stamped or pressed into the desired curve for forming a bearing proper, and their opposite edges are folded backwardly and abut against each other, so as to form a strong and durable bearing.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Pat ent, is-

1. In a wheel,the combination with separate concavo-convex sheet-metal hub-sections having their marginal edges turned over and formed into annularreinforcing-beads,spokes inserted between the sections, and means for clamping the hub sections and spokes together.

2. In combination with the rim of a wheel, of opposite hub-sections having inclined walls, one of the sections being adjusted toward and from the other, tubular spokes inserted between the sections and provided with flaring side walls engaged by the inclined portions of the hub-sections, whereby the impinging of the inclined portions of the hub sections against the flaring walls of the spokes operates to draw the spokes inwardly and means to adjust the movable section.

3. In combination with a rim of a wheel of a hub including a cylindrical sleeve and hollow sheet-metal sections surrounding the sleeve, one of the sections being movable toward and from the other, means to adjust and to hold the movable section, one of the sections having an inclined engaging portion for the being adjustable on the sleeve, separate sheetmetal hub-sections encircling the sleeve and engaging their respective abutments and tubular spokes inserted between the sections and having adjacent walls tapering inwardly and their side walls flared outwardly and engaged by the hub-sections, the adjacent tapering walls of the spokes being in contact with each other.

5. In combination with the rim of a wheel,

a cylindrical sheet-metal sleeve having one end provided with a fixed annular abutment, a cap closing the opposite end of the sleeve and also provided with an abutment, said cap being adjustable on the sleeve, separate sheetmetal hub-sections encircling the sleeve and engaging their respective abutments and tubular spokes inserted between the sections and having adjacent walls tapering inwardly and their side walls flared outwardly and engaged by the hub-sections, the adjacent tapering walls of the spokes being in contact with each other, and clamping-bolts passed through the spokes and hub-sections for the purpose described.

6. In a wheel, the combination with a sheetmetal rim having spoke-openings elongated laterally, asheet-metal hub forming an annular recess, tubular spokes having their inner ends inserted in the recess and expanded laterally and their outer ends inserted through the apertures in the rim and elongated laterally, said outer ends having shoulders engaging the inner and outer faces of the rim.

7 A sheet-metal tubular spoke for wheels, said spoke having a rectangular inner end two of its opposite walls tapering inwardly and having their inner extremities bent toward each other to form reinforcing-flanges, the two opposite walls flaring outwardly for the purpose described and the outer end of the spoke being elongated in the direction of flare of the inner end. v

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 20th day of November, 1902.

CHARLES H. BICALKY.

WVitnesses:

H. E. OHAsE, HOWARD P. DENISON. 

